You may think the answer to beating binge eating is more willpower and restriction, but Dietitian Lucy Carey says permission to binge is key.
“You’re kidding me,” she said, mouth agog.
“Absolutely not,” I replied. “I’m deadly serious. You need to give yourself permission to binge. If that need overwhelms you, I want you to binge.”
“But… but…”
“You’re afraid you’ll gain weight.”
“Well, yeah. I can’t just go around binge eating, I’ll explode. I thought these sessions were meant to stop me binge eating.”
“Hear me out…”
This is one of the most powerful tools to tackle binge eating and it is not talked about or utilised nearly enough. Permission to binge sounds incredibly counterintuitive, but human psychology isn’t exactly logical.
Binge eating comes from two places: it stems from both physical hunger (because you’re likely restricting what you eat with diets and trying to compensate for binges) and the need to numb down or regulate emotions through food.
Permission to binge hits on both of these points by:
- Taking away the guilt and shame of eating unhealthy foods (typically the ones being binged on) because you have full permission to eat them, and to eat them in any quantity you desire. Disordered eating behaviours also thrive off secrecy, so bringing it into the open is like stifling a flame.
- Permission to binge is also a powerful way of saying, “You’re not crazy”! This binge eating is serving you in some way, so while we’ll work on ways to deal with your emotions that don’t use food, in the meantime you may still need to binge.
The ultimate goal of tackling binge eating isn’t to never binge again… It’s to add more tools to the toolbox so that you’re not relying on food any longer. Binges will get smaller and you’ll start to go longer between episodes. There will always be ups and downs, but permission to binge will start you on the right trajectory.
“So, what do you think?” I asked my client.
“I get it now,” she said. “I’m scared to do it, but I get it.” She was silent for a minute, then she added, “Okay, I’ll do it. If I need to, I’ll binge.”
If you have clients who struggle with binge eating, or if you struggle yourself, I’d love to introduce you to my new mini-course Beating Binge Eating.
If you feel like other people eat anything they want without fear, guilt or weight gain but you’re stuck in a vicious binge eating cycle, then traditional advice is not going to help you. There’s a secret way to beat binge eating for good, with no willpower needed! And I break it all down in this mini-course.
Whether you want personal food freedom, or you’re a health professional wanting to journey alongside your clients, this 5-part mini-course will change your whole approach to binge eating.
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